Looking at records and their previous meeting, it would have been understandable to expect a dramatic, back-and-forth game between the Hayden High School and Soroco High School boys basketball teams on Friday, Feb. 12.

Soroco went into the evening with a 4-9 record, and Hayden stood at 2-11.

In the Meeker shootout in December, Hayden bested Soroco by 2 points thanks to a last-second shot. The Rams quickly showed that’s not how the night would go.

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The boys in maroon and white led 23-8 after one quarter, had a 36-15 lead at the half and ended up winning 64-42.

The combination of Soroco seniors Jed Kirby and Luke Duksa proved perilous. Kirby would bring the ball up the court, while Duksa got settled under the basket.

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As two of the taller players on the floor, Kirby found Duksa with no issue, and Duksa scored with ease.

“(Kirby) has got very good ball handling ability and his no-look passes are really good,” Duksa said. “I just finish at the hole.”

The two went on like that through the first half and took a 21-point lead into the locker room.

Hayden took over in the third. The Tigers held the Rams to 9 points while scoring 15, trimming the lead to 45-30 with one quarter left to play.

The Rams suddenly seemed frustrated when the score hit 47-36, their massive advantage diminished to just 11 points. The fouls were also starting to add up.

With 5 minutes, 31 seconds left, Soroco called a timeout.

“We didn’t really have to settle down. We just came out of halftime just asleep,” Duksa said. “We just had to kind of regroup and get our ducks back in a row.”

Soroco scored the next 5 points, restoring the Rams’ confidence and giving them a comfortable advantage.

Bradley Hoskinson left no doubt with a wide open 3-pointer, extending the lead to 18. Then Lucas Koler got in on the action, adding a deep shot of his own to bring the score to 58-37. With that, hopes of a comeback were dashed.

Soroco plays Vail Mountain on Saturday, Feb. 12, while Hayden travels to West Grand.

Soroco 64, Hayden 42

S 23 13 9 19

H 8 7 15 12

To reach Shelby Reardon, call 970-871-4253, email sreardon@SteamboatPilot.com or follow her on Twitter @ByShelbyReardon.